I would literally just wait for the vision. If it did not happen I would go drinking. Sometimes I got A's and sometime I got C's. It is easier is work the process and justification out post - rationally.

Don't worry about software. Use what works for you - nothing beats building physical models, and your profs will love you for it. It allow as you to truly understand the geometry of the spaces you are creating. Not 3d printed, hand built only.

Also, produce 1 perspective sketch and 1 physical model everyday  you are in studio, no exceptions.

As to the creative process, a tab or two of lsd and a stroll around the site ending at a park always worked for me ( in school at least - its hard to get clients to allow this)

We had a client come into our firm forr a meeting, and as he left, he said, "Now go smoke a joint and come up with something cool." We all giggled. But no joint happened. 

Design is different for everyone, but I used to, every once in a while, get out a fresh piece of paper and draw the site and my ideas all completely from memory as I wanted them to be. Only later would I translate them into a scaled drawing that actually had to work. It helped me prioritize and visualize deeper. 

Jesus RB, lighten up. I think it was pretty common in studio for people to at least have a couple drinks when they hit a wall. Or other stuff. Manufactured creativity - whatever worked for them. The straight-edge'rs were the ones with boring projects and bad ideas.

work hard, sketch alot, work with physical materials and models. It takes mastery of line, form, and material before you are going to put them all together into masterful architecture. I am certainly not there yet.

I apologize if my advice came off as "go trip your balls off and you'll magically conjure up a building." Don't do drugs, ok? 

Although.... 

Has there ever actually been a case where an architect lost their license for designing while intoxicated?  I thought most architects became alcoholics

You're in college.  If you want to responsibly try out some recreational drug use, why not?  On the other hand, 3 hours of sleep in 5 days sounds unhealthy.  Budget your time, and remember stress will probably kill you before the drugs anyway

Don't drink and drive

Hello.

I dont have talented for that time. but, i think architecture is something that can be learned. So, for the first time you can seeing and reading of many magazines architecture. The theory and the picture will be inspiration of you.

Thats it.

If there is one profession where it is allowed (even encouraged) to be intoxicated while practicing, it is this one. If you could get your license taken away for that, there would be a huge number of architects losing their license. Maybe that's an idea for thinning the herd, start turning in licensed architects that practice architecture while lit to clean out the ranks a bit. 

At any rate, I didn't mean to throw this discussion so off-track with such a minor comment. 

I suppose my point was that architecture can become suffocating, especially in studio with the theory and lectures and pressure. Relax yourself, go to the site, and try visualizing the building. Designing from an experiential vantage point, even if it is in your mind, beats the hell out of drawing plans to try and find inspiration.

I would never check for code compliance or work with a consulting engineer while under the influence of substances, but there are plenty of times I want a nice scotch or some working weed while I am sketching design concepts or building models. Architecture is the mairrage of art and science, amongst other things, and intoxication can absolutely stimulate creative impulses to feed the artistic side.

c'mon guys is drinking and taking naps only solution
I think that studying of works of other architect can be helpful....or reading magazines and archi websites....what can be inspirational source for architecture ?
sometimes i have nice ideas which are complicated and i can't release them because of lack of software,theory knowledge
revit is kind complicated for me but you can make nice forms.....i am used to sketch up logic so  i have problem to get used to revit logic of drawing plans then goning to 3d view...i was thinking on going on course for revit or archicad which one is better for you ?

in my opinion, try to develop your idea in your head first, then use whatever tool to communicate and develop that idea.  so if you're designing the parthenon, picture the parthenon in you head, then get it out of you head and onto a piece of paper or a computer screen or whatever.

if you're in school, you might want to pay attention to what your professor wants.  some people think they only way to design is using pencil and trace paper.  if that's the studio you're in, then try to focus on using pencil and paper to communicate your idea.  practice sketching.  sketch other buildings.  get used to pencil and paper.

other professors might think you need build chip board models.  if that's the case, then focus on using chip board to get the idea from your head to the model.  make lots of models.  make mistakes.  learn to do it better.  try not to bleed too much on your project.

still others might want you to develop some sort of 3d rendering software.  if that's the case, then use the tool your professor wants and do what you can to learn it.  ask questions when you have questions to ask and all that.  if you're able to ask your professor questions, it might be best to keep a list of what you want to ask and get it all out at once, rather than expecting them to be available at every whim.

of course there are also professors that are more interested in what you're thinking rather than what tool you're trying to learn how to use.  in that case, maybe use the tool you feel most comfortable with, or spend some time developing your skills with the tools you feel you need to develop.  school is a time of learning, so in the long run learning is the best use of your time.

the professors that are more interested in your thought process rather than the tool your using are probably going to be the best.  listen to them, and keep an open mind.

instead of taking naps, get a good 8 hours of sleep.

i'll add more to that

to develop your brain, think about buildings.  while you walk along campus, or down a residential street, look at the buildings and think about how they go together.  did they put columns in front of a porch?  how is the porch proportioned to the rest of the building?  does look good?  if it's something you don't like, try to figure out why you really don't like it.  how would you do it better?  if you changed it, would it be somewhere a person would actually want to live?

how does the entry sequence work for your student union or classroom building or whatever?  do people seem comfortable going in and out of the vestibule?  are there like 20 doors, and if so, are people using all the doors or just one or two?  try to think through why that might be.  is the atrium comfortable?  is it big?  not big?  do you like it, and if you could would you change it?  is wayfinding intuitive to get to whichever room you're trying to get to?

those i think are some very general and generic questions you could ask yourself while experiencing the architecture around you, rather than simply being a passive element within the architecture.  pick a detail you like, and think about it.  that's how, in my opinion, you get your brain to start working in a way that will work better for architectural design.

thank you curtkram :)

This thread made me laugh. that is all.